News Tribune Company adding more color and speed with a new UNISET 75

Tuesday, June 22, 2004

Press release from the issuing company

Jefferson City, Missouri — The News Tribune Company, publisher of the leading dailies and weeklies in Missouri’s capital region, has purchased a UNISET 75. The press is scheduled to be installed by MAN Roland in September 2005 in an all-new new production facility.
The new press will be configured with four reel stands, 32 couples and a 2:3:3 folder. It’s on track to be operational by mid-February 2006, replacing a 32-year old Goss system.
The UNISET will be the centerpiece of a new 40,000 sq ft production center. Mike Vivion, the News Tribune’s General Manager, says that planning and zoning for the plant have been approved by the city and that construction will begin later this summer. “Our CTP system, pressroom and mailroom will be housed in the new facility,” he notes.
As far as furnishing his new pressroom goes, Vivion says his team did its homework before choosing MAN Roland and UNISET: “We researched all the brands and all the models extensively to determine how each press maker’s solution could best fulfill our needs.”
Once the News Tribune narrowed down its search to UNISET, Vivion and his team hit the road for an up-close assessment. “We visited a lot of plants and places to see the UNISET in action,” he says. “Everywhere we went, we found people were happy with the press and happy with the MAN Roland experience. But most of all, we liked the way the press was printing. That was major factor in our decision to purchase the UNISET.”
The News Tribune’s requirements were similar to those of other dailies across North America. “Adding more color is a major consideration,” Vivion notes. “We’re turning down color ads now, because our old Goss has limited color capacity “The 4 X 4 configuration of UNISET lets us put color on every page. That’s 32 pages of four color, everywhere.”
The News Tribune Company serves the state’s capital with three publications. The Sunday News Tribune has a paid circulation of 24,041. The Post-Tribune is published weekday afternoons and Saturday mornings, with a circulation of 17,351. And the Daily Capital News is a morning paper that reaches 2,388 paying readers. The company also prints the weekly Fulton Sun with a circulation of 4,087 and the California Democrat with 3,613 subscribers, extending its coverage of central Missouri.
Vivion emphasizes that the quick turnaround capabilities of the UNISET will be invaluable in printing multiple titles one right after another, particularly when the agenda includes outside assignments.
“It gets particularly hectic around here on Tuesdays,” he says. “We print an outside publication first, then the California Democrat, and follow that with the Daily Capital News. An outside weekly is next, followed by The Fulton Sun.”
Increasing its commercial printing capacity is also on the News Tribune’s to-do list. “That’s another big plus for putting in this press,” Vivion states. “We produce a wide variety of commercial work, for customers ranging from local businesses to the State of Missouri. The quality UNISET delivers will allow us to do more kinds of commercial work.”
The News Tribune’s existing press is usually booked to capacity, further limiting outside opportunities. “The faster makereadies and high production speeds UNISET will provide will open up more time slots for us,” says Vivion.
To make the most of its new color capabilities, the newspaper is scheduling a redesign of its format to be launched when UNISET goes online in 2006. “UNSET will allow us to provide better sectioning for our readers and advertisers,” Vivion remarks. “We will also be able lower the price of our color advertising thanks to the efficiencies provided by our new press.”
Training was another factor in the News Tribune’s selection process. “We investigated the training capabilities of the different press makers thoroughly and found that MAN Roland did an excellent job in this area.”
But the bottom line for the News Tribune is press performance. “We’re after quality and quantity, and the UNISET is going to provide both for us,” Vivion declares.